General Electric Unit to Stop
Tracking Survey Respondents

Customers and employees giving their opinions in investment surveys are finding their thoughts aren't always as private as they look at first blush.

In two recent cases, large companies have had to backtrack on their surveying approaches after criticisms were leveled about the lack of anonymity in their apparently anonymous surveys. Earlier this week, General Electric Co.'s GE Investments unit said it would stop using tracking codes on envelopes that identify respondents to service-quality surveys without their knowledge. The...